Scotland Men’s U19 Head Coach Gordon Drummond has announced a squad of 15 to travel to the West Indies next month for the ICC Men’s U19 World Cup after his side were given a last-minute ticket to the event having narrowly missed out on direct qualification.
The squad only has one change from the group which travelled to Spain in September for the qualifying tournament, with all rounder Aberdeenshire CC’s Aayush Dasmahapatra added to the group. Five of the players have previous World Cup experience having played at the tournament in South Africa in 2020.
Scotland, who were beaten to the final qualifying spot by Ireland in the European regional qualifying event in September, but were given a second chance when New Zealand withdrew due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, will play in Group D with the host nation, Australia and Sri Lanka.
Captain Charlie Peet said: “We feel really lucky to have been given the chance to play in the World Cup against the best U19 players in the world. Our group is one of the toughest and we’re facing three very good teams, but we’re looking forward to the challenge.
“To have players in the squad with experience of playing in a previous U19 World Cup is huge. Five of us have seen what it takes to compete at this level and that experience will really benefit us.
“On a personal level I want to lead the team well and produce match-winning performance whether that’s with bat or ball. As a team, we have a good chance to go and finish the highest that Scotland U19 men have ever finished at this tournament.”
The team is led by former Scotland captain Drummond, with Cedric English and Gloucestershire CCC’s Owen Dawkins who has previously worked with the men’s national side, acting as assistant coaches.
With COVID-19 managed environments still in place, Cricket Scotland continues to place emphasis on player welfare, and psychologist Sahen Gupta will travel with the team to provide support for the players and staff. Gupta has been working with the team since late 2020 thanks to a partnership between Glasgow Caledonian University’s DPsych programme and Cricket Scotland.
Head Coach Drummond said: “The squad are excited about the opportunity of playing against the best players in the world at their age. It’s an excellent opportunity to experience the cricketing culture in another part of the world, continuing their development and showcasing what they can do.
“We have selected a strong squad that covers all bases with 5 players having had previous U19 World Cup experience. We know life in a managed environment is tough so the quality of support staff we have assembled will be a huge asset for the trip. Our preparation has gone well within our restrictions, and the guys are looking forward to getting back on the field asap in the new year.”
Scotland will be in action on the first day of the competition, which runs from 14 January until 5 February, taking on Sri Lanka in Guyana.
The format sees the top top two teams from each of the four groups advance to the Super League will the remaining teams feature in a Plate competition.
Travelling squad:
Jamie Cairns (Grange CC)
Christopher Cole (Hampton Wick Royal CC)
Aayush Dasmahapatra (Aberdeenshire CC)
Olly Davidson (Harborne CC)
Sam Elstone (Weston-Super-Mare CC)
Sean Fischer-Keogh (Greenock CC)
Gabriel Gallman-Findlay (Taunton CC)
Jack Jarvis (Grange CC)
Rafay Khan (Renfrew CC)
Tom Mackintosh (vc) (Newcastle CC)
Muhaymen Majeed (Renfrew CC)
Ruaridh McIntyre (Carlton CC)
Charlie Peet (c) (Grange CC)
Lyle Robertson (Falkland CC)
Charlie Tear (wk) (West Chiltington and Thakeham CC)
Non Travelling Reserves:
H Ali
F Huddleston
J Lambley
M Layton
D Stevens
Staff:
G Drummond (Head Coach), C English (Asst Coach), O Dawkins (Asst Coach), K Crichton (Team Manager), S Hislen (S&C), S Gupta (Sports psychologist/welfare support), D Kershaw (Physio)
